Thursday, July 12, 2012

The Russian Air Force Can See Sarah Palin’s House from their Bear Bombers

In the past month, Russian bombers have twice been
involved in arctic war games near U.S. airspace around Alaska. The first time
began on the same day as a meeting between President Obama and Russian Prime
Minister, Vladimir Putin, on June 18th and continued until June 25th.
An article at the Free
Beacon notes that two key Alaskan sites may be potential targets in exercise—the
missile defense base at Ft. Greely and the Trans Alaska pipeline which is
responsible for transporting about 11% of America’s oil.

The article later
goes on to quote Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas
McInerney, a former Alaska North American Aerospace Defense commander:

“The Russians continue to exercise
our air defense identification zone, which shows Mr. Putin loves to let
President Obama know that they still have global capability,” McInerney said in
an interview. “So much for reset.”

McInerney
also said the Obama administration kept the encounter between the bombers and
U.S. fighters secret because “they obviously don’t want the world to know that
the exercise was done deliberately to coincide with the Obama-Putin summit.”

Just as concerning
as Russia’s building of a new bomber is its eagerness to flaunt its old ones. Since 2007, Russia’s Air Force has
increased the number of exercises it conducts near U.S. air space around
Alaska, and according toBill Gertz, American and
Canadian Air Force fighters intercepted two Russian bombers that crossed into
the U.S.’s 200-mile air defense identification zone around Alaska on July 4.
Prior to this, Russian war games held in the same area in mid-June included 30
bombers, and may have been designed to test cruise missile attacks on U.S.
missile defense facilities.

The AEI article notes that a new Russian bomber will be ready 5 years earlier than anticipated also references the second time that
the Russian Air Force came near Alaskan air space on July 4th in
what a U.S. Defense official
called “Putin’s Fourth of July Bear greeting to Obama”.

On the campaign
trail four years ago I talked about Alaska's strategic location on the globe,
the potential for future conflicts over arctic transportation lanes and
resources, and the crucial need to keep our eye on Putin's activities. Later I spoke out against Obama's
egregious decision to cut back Alaska's missile defense systems. Please take a
look at this article about Russia's arctic war game exercises earlier this
month. This shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who was paying attention four
years ago. Maybe now we should ask the President if this is what "more
flexibility" means.

Indeed. Governor Palin took office in December of
2006. When Russia began to increase their exercises in 2007, she was in
office. So while she was mocked for
saying that Putin “rears his head” in Alaska air space during her interview with the
Perky One during the 2008 campaign, she was privy to that defense
information regarding Russia’s arctic war exercise starting in 2007. In fact,
the Alaska Air National Guard was recognized as an Air Force
Outstanding Unit in March of 2008 in part because they “maintained North American air sovereignty
by detecting, monitoring and escorting 22 Russian bombers from within its area
of operations” (h/t Gary Jackson). Who was the commander-in-chief of the Alaska Air
National Guard at that time? Governor
Palin.

Why does this matter
now? For two reasons. One, the agenda driven media mocked a Vice Presidential
candidate for telling the truth about her foreign policy credentials and the importance
of Alaska’s position on the globe. This
should serve as a teachable moment for the willfully naïve Establishment
Republicans who still wish to play nice with the media. Two, it is important to
take Russia seriously today. It’s not neo-McCarthyism, nor the international
overinvolvement of neoconservatism; it’s peace through strength. In her
foreign policy speech in the Spring of 2011, Governor Palin outlined
limited, but clearly defined objectives for American international involvement, but she
also noted that America must never retreat into isolation. She said, "we have a responsibility
to lead", as “the stronger we are, the stronger and more peaceful the world will
be under our example”.

This isn’t about
warmongering , being the world’s policeman, or being on the offensive as a
foreign policy strategy. It is about an honest recognition of threats and
ensuring that your defense is a strategic deterrent. This can’t be done when
the media mocks a candidate’s credentials, nor when a president is flippant
towards national defense. With Russian Bear bombers creeping close to American
air space, as the powerful
Reagan ad noted, isn’t it important to as strong as the bear?